Aftershocks terrify Surigao

SURIGAO, Philippines – Thousands of residents of this city sought refuge in the streets as aftershocks hit the region yesterday, two days after a powerful earthquake killed six.

The 6.7-magnitude quake struck Surigao and nearby areas of Mindanao late Friday, injuring hundreds, with over a thousand homes destroyed or damaged, officials said.

People who had fled their damaged homes wrapped themselves in blankets and sacks for a second night as they slept side-by-side on the pavement since Saturday.

The Philippine Institute of Seismology and Volcanology (Phivolcs) recorded 135 weaker quakes in Surigao, a city of 152,000 people, and in the region around it since the quake struck, though there were no additional reports of casualties or damage.

“The people are terrified of the aftershocks,” said Romina Marasigan, spokesperson for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

The NDRRMC reported the number of dead remained at six though the injured increased to 202. Many of those killed or injured were pinned down or hit by debris during the quake.

Marasigan said classes in Surigao City are suspended today to give way to damage assessment in schools for the safety of teachers and students.

She announced that generator sets, solar lamps, high energy biscuits, brown rice, laminated sacks, mosquito nets, plastic mats and blankets are among the items that would be distributed through the local disaster councils.

“We remain on red alert status together with our response cluster, including the regional council in Caraga region which will monitor the situation and gather more information on the extent of damage,” Marasigan said.

Because aftershocks are still expected, Marasigan called on residents of Surigao City to remain calm and alert with the safety of their families considered as their primary concern.

“This was the first time Surigao had suffered a quake this strong. The previous one occurred in the 1800s,” said Martin Andanar, presidential communications chief and a native of the city.

“This is the strongest (earthquake) for this century,” he said. His house in the city was also damaged by the quake.

Andanar thanked private groups that extended assistance to the earthquake survivors. He said among the groups providing help is the MVP Foundation, which has sent cellphone chargers and generators to affected areas.

He said agencies are continuously offloading relief items at the Butuan Airport, some 100 kilometers away from the city.

Andanar stressed the need for the public to donate potable water and other relief items to quake survivors.

“Water is important in Surigao. Potable water is what is important here,” Andanar said.

“We ask the NGOs (non-government organizations) to donate water through the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) so it can be sent here in Butuan City through a C-130 plane,” he added.

US Ambassador Sung Kim expressed condolences to the families of those killed in the earthquake.

“My thoughts are with the people of Surigao, especially those who lost loved ones,” Kim said in a post on Twitter.

Surigao Bishop Antonieto Cabahog issued a prayer for the recovery of the region from the quake.

“We implore the help of Our Lady of Lourdes to whom we turn our gaze, to stay with us and lead us safely to the peace of Jesus, her Son,” Cabahog prayed.

‘There is always a time’

President Duterte flew to the region yesterday to inspect the response effort, which officials said has shifted to relief and rehabilitation after the last of the dead and injured were pulled from the rubble.

He was accompanied by a military transport plane loaded with generator sets, solar lamps, high-energy biscuits, mosquito nets and blankets for the displaced residents.

Duterte comforted the residents, who were already getting jittery with the aftershocks.

“In everything that happens in the world, there is always a time for them,” Duterte told the residents gathered at the Surigao City gymnasium.

“Thank God. Buotan man gud ang mga Surigaonon (Surigaonons are good people),” he said.

Duterte quoted a passage in the Bible in sympathy for those who lost their loved ones.

“Naa ang Ecclesiastes (3:1) in the Bible, naay panahon sa kasadya ug kaguol (there is time for happiness and sadness, for joy and sorrow),” the President said in Cebuano.

He said God was good and merciful that the intensity of the tremor that struck Surigao was not that strong or else the damage and the number of dead and injured would have been greater.

Duterte vowed at least P2 billion in aid to the survivors and rehabilitation of infrastructure damaged by the quake.

“Take it easy. Don’t get frustrated. Is P2 billion enough to buy them a subdivision?” the President then asked Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno nearby.

Duterte promised to come back and share stories with the grief-stricken residents.

Duterte, along with Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo and Diokno, led the distribution of drinking water and food packs to the residents before a meeting with local officials.

Earlier yesterday, long lines of people carrying pails and jugs queued for water rations supplied by fire trucks after the quake cut off water supply.

Some residents vented their anger on some local officials who reportedly refused to distribute bottles of water that they said would be given later upon the arrival of the President.

“We’re still being hit by aftershocks, and as of now we do not have tap water supply. The people are suffering,” provincial information officer Mary Escalante told ABS-CBN in an interview.

“Buildings that suffered structural damage have been closed,” she said, adding some schools and gyms meant to serve as evacuation centers were among those damaged by the quake.

The quake also damaged bridges and roads and knocked out power supply, though electricity was restored in most of Surigao on Saturday.

Flights at the Surigao City airport were cancelled because of a damaged runway while all port operations at the Lipata Port Station were moved to the Surigao City port due to damaged roads.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said ten major bridges roads were damaged by the quake.

Most of the damaged roads are still passable to all types of vehicles.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the department would implement a price freeze on all fuel products in Surigao, which is now under a state of calamity.

“With the declaration of a state of calamity, government will impose a price freeze on basic energy commodities for 15 days, particularly for kerosene and household LPG,” Cusi said.

“In order to effectively ensure the supply of petroleum products, oil companies are obliged to update the DOE of the operational status of their depots and gasoline stations within the areas to stabilize the supply and reduce chances of individuals who are taking advantage of the oil situation,” he said.

The DOE is closely monitoring the power restoration efforts being conducted by the Surigao del Norte Electric Cooperative Inc. (SURNECO).

The National Electrification Administration said 95 percent of SURNECO’s franchise area has been restored by 11 p.m. Saturday.

More aftershocks

Phivolcs director Renato Solidum warned of more aftershocks that may further damage already damaged structures.

Solidum said aftershocks are normal after a strong earthquake, but the seismic events could last for days or weeks.

A total of 135 aftershocks were recorded as of yesterday noon, of which 55 were plotted and four were reportedly felt, he said.

“Aftershocks can occur days to weeks but the number in general will decline,” Solidum said.

“Literally aftershocks are smaller than the main shock. But if the question is would there be a similar or larger earthquake coming from the same fault of the February 10 earthquake, it is not discounted but the possibility is low,” he added.

Yesterday’s aftershocks registered magnitudes of 2.2 to 4.1, with intensities ranging from Intensity 1 to 3, Phivolcs said.

Solidum advised residents of Surigao and nearby areas to be cautious of structures visibly weakened or with signs of damage as these may be further damaged by aftershocks.

In case their houses or buildings showed signs of damage, Solidum urged owners to seek the help of municipal or city engineers.

Phivolcs said last Friday’s magnitude-6.7 quake was generated by the movement of the Surigao segment of the Philippine fault.

The strongest ground shaking was felt in Surigao City at Intensity 7, which is described by Phivolcs as “destructive.”

On July 1, 1879, the Surigao segment of the Philippine fault also generated a magnitude-7.4 quake. This was considered to be the largest quake to hit the area on record, Phivolcs said.

An average of five earthquakes, most of them undetectable except through instruments, hit daily across the Philippines, which lies on the so-called Ring of Fire, a vast Pacific Ocean region where many earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.

The last lethal quake that hit the country measured 7.1-magnitude. It left over 220 people dead and destroyed historic churches when it struck Bohol in October 2013. – Ben Serrano, Edith Regalado, Edu Punay, Helen Flores, Perseus Echeminada, Mayen Jaymalin, Michael Punongbayan, Danessa Rivera, Pia Lee-Brago